Sound Off for Sunday, May 25, 2014

On asparagus picker: To last Sunday’s Sound Off caller about picking asparagus being legal, it depends on what road you are on. If you are on a state or county road, that’s OK, but on most town roads, the land hasn’t changed possession. The farmer still owns the land to the middle of the road, so it’s not legal on town roads. You should at least ask before you pick.

-- Regarding the woman picking asparagus (Page 6A, May 13), several of us in the neighborhood pretty much agree. Police did their job. They did what they had to do. The only thing really accomplished was the guy who went whining to the police got his ego inflated more, not only at the woman’s expense but also at the expense of taxpayers.

On politics: I’d like to see more liberal comments in your paper. My old boss used to say you confuse me with your footwork much like the Republican Party with their serious threats concerning voter fraud and need to confirm the identities of people trying to vote. Yet they fight tooth and nail against requiring an ID for background checks for felons to buy guns.

On 15th Senate District: Sen. Tim Cullen announced his full support for Austin Scieszinski. I have a lot of respect for Tim, and he has worked with all three of the candidates. If he says Austin is the best choice, then we should listen.

-- Austin Scieszinski is the best choice. We need new ideas and a candidate whom we can trust. I doubt Janis Ringhand has any new ideas, and Mike Sheridan has proven that he can’t be trusted.

On voting: When you have a right-wing kangaroo U.S. Supreme Court, of course they want to suppress voting and deny the fact that voter fraud is completely fictitious and never has been a problem and never has been proven beyond a small percentage.

On helping hand: I’d like to thank the good Samaritan who helped me upright my motorcycle on May 16 when I and my motorcycle went down on Franklin Street.

On city projects: We didn’t get to vote on the bus garage. We don’t get to vote on a fire station, but the one thing the majority of people probably want, which is better streets and roads, oh we’re going to have a referendum on that. Why don’t we go back and have a referendum on the other two and see what happens? This is bad politics for the city council.

On God: I’m calling in about the letter H. Eric Wille wrote May 21. I agree with him totally. It’s getting sickening listening to all these topics out there. I think if God were brought up more often, especially in homes, there would be a lot less things going on. Maybe kids would behave a lot better. All this other stuff going on is getting to be disgusting.

On burglars: In recent weeks, I’ve had somebody try and one succeed in breaking into my house on the northeast side. Somebody got into my garage hacking the keyless entry code on my door. They broke the lock on my freezer and left the door open. I probably lost $200 worth of food. I’m so devastated. Please, if you live on the northeast side, be aware.

On manhole covers: Potholes are one thing, but manhole covers can be potholes also. Some are below street level. I emailed Neenah Foundry, the name on one cover. They make risers in one-inch increments to raise manhole covers up to the street level. We’ve got money for a new fire station and bus garage. They use the same streets that we do. Fix them.

On cemetery flowers: In response to Wednesday’s Sound Off about cemetery flowers, on a particular time of year and time of night, there could be up to 100 deer in that cemetery, and they love to eat flowers. They go from the cemetery down to the river and back.

On voucher schools: With these schools, not only are children learning more but the incompetent teachers are let go immediately, unlike public schools where teachers can do almost anything and not be held accountable, thanks to their overpowering unions.

On climate change: In response to the May 21 letter, climate change is exactly that—changes in the weather. Anyone gardening since 1978 has seen most every kind of weather. No one can depend on it. Just ask any farmer. Addressing climate change has nothing to do with protecting our country, defending our Constitution and stabilizing the weather so our children and grandchildren have a safer life.

On graduation rates: The Gazette article May 9 provided positive news by noting an increase in the graduation rate for minority students in the Janesville district. The sad news is that the graduation rate of white students was lower than the state average and that, overall, Janesville overall ranked 11th of 14 area districts.